Electrode.



PATENTED JULY 14, 1908.

H. S. BLAGKMORB.

ELECTRODE.

APPLICATION FILED AUG.31,1907.

UNTTED STATES PATENT onnioi.

HENRY SPENCER BLACKMORE, OF MOUNT VERNON, NEW YORK.

ELECTRODE. f

Patented July 14, 1908.

Original application filed Apri1.18, 1903, Serial No. 153,929. Divided.and this application led August 31, 1907.

Serial No. 390,949. l

To all whom 'it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY SPENCER BLAQKMORE, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at Mount Vernon, in the county loi Westchester andState of New York, have invented certain new and useful Im rovements inElectrodes, of which the fol owing 1s a speclficatlon.

This invention relates to electrodes for electro-chemical,metallurgical, or other purposes; and it consists of an electrodecomprising metal carbid, acetylid, or other metalcarbon compound orunion, together with a binder, suchy as carbon. f

1,5 ln the prior art it has beenthe custom,

when electrodes of metal. carbid have been desired, to employ thecarbid, en masse, such as would be o tained by taking a piece of metalcarbid, such as calcium carbid, and forming or manufacturing the sameinto any desired shape, by turning on'l a lathe` or shaping by othermechanical means, or casting the molten carbid in a mold. It, is,however, vdisaclvantageous to employ carbid electrodes of this characterfor the reason that it is expensive to manufacture the electrodes fromingots of carbid, or, in case the electrodes are cast from moltencarbids, they are apt to crack, split or break, for the reason that theycannot be readily annealed, and they are also apt to becomedisintegrated by moist atmosphere; non-metal car'- ids, which arenon-conductors of electricity, have also been employed as elecorresister to the passage of the current.

through the electrode, necessitates the association of a large amount ofsome foreign conductive ingredient, lsuch as carbon,

which interferes, to a great extent, with the,

trodes, by associating the same with a largephysical roperties of thecarbid, and Which carbid o non-metal cannot be readily utilized toobtain resultsof its own individual properties, without increasing thepercentage content of the'non-metal and nonl-.elec- 60 tricallyconductive carbid, to an extent that its electrical resistance wouldresult in a large ex enditure of electrical energy forl its utilization.My electrode, however, contains metal carbid, acetylid, or othermetalcarbon-containing compound, and there- Jfore provides as aprincipal constituent, a substance which is an electrical conductor,instead of a non-conductor or resister, such as non-metal-carbid,whereby the hysical '70 and chemical properties of the meta carbid ormetal-carbon-containing com ound may be rendered available,v withoutt elarge expenditure of electrical energy occasioned by the emplo ment ofnon-metal carbids.

As an il ustration of a composite electrode constituted in accordancewlththe. present invention, I will take, for example, one comprising ametal-carbon compound, such as the socalled calcium carbid, the samebeing 80 of that s ecies of carbid known as acetylid, or, in ot erwords, a compound of carbon with an element, such as calcium, in whichthe two carbon atoms are so interlinked or joined as to present thecharacter of a dyad, or which may be considered as acetylene in whichhydrogen is .replaced by calcium or other element; calcium carbid (CaCz)being considered as acetylene (H2G2) in which the two atoms of hydrogenare replaced by the 90v dyad calcium, the aforesaid metal-carboncompound, being known ascalcium carbid or acetylid, which compound isbonded or Y bound by a binder, such as carbon, in a comosite orhomogeneous composition, the ginder existing in such limited proportiononly as to unite the particles of calcium carbid in a homogeneous massor body, said carbon binder being also a conductor of electricity.

These electrodes have theadvantage, when employed in electrochemical,metallurgical, smelting, or other operations of retaining theirmass-continuity While being superficially acted upon by substances oringredients communicating therewith, when employed as electrodes,Without crumbling, decomposing, or becoming interiorly disinte grated. Y

The formation of the composite composition of metal-carbon-containingcompound, such as metal carbid or acetylid, united by carbon or otherbinder, is `accomplished 'b any Well known or practical means, Whic maybe such as is usually employed to bind particles of carbon electrodes.

As an illustration of an application of my combined metal carbid,acetylid, ,or other metal-carbon-containing compound, with carbon orother binder as an electrode, I Will take, for'example, its employmentin elec-V trolytic processes, such as is usually employed for theelectrical reduction of metals, or for metallurgical urposes, saidapplication being illustrated) in the accompanying drawing, 1n Which--Figure 1 is an elevation of m improved electrode; Fig. 2, a longitudinasection of thelsame; Fig. 3, a top plan vieW of the apparatus Figli', avertlcal transverse section, and Fig. 5, a vertical longitudinalsection.

Referring to the several views, the letter A indicates a suitable box orreceptacle, preferably of cast iron, lined with a conductive substanceB, such as carbon, into which `project the heating electrodes C, C,which pass through the insulators D, D. The material is introduced intothe ap aratus through the openin s E, which are clbsed by insulatingpugs passing into insulating-cover X, and

I v through which pass the electrodes G, which consist of a mixture ofmetal'carbid, acetylid, or other 'metal-carbon-containing compound G,and a binder G preferably of electrically conductive nature, such ascarbon, as shown in Fig. 2.

l An example of the employment'specifically of an e ectrode containingan acetylid, such as calcium carbid, may be obtained by referring to itsapplication in connection with the reduction of metal ox'y-halidoroxy-fluorid compounds or compositions, such as may be formed byheating a mixture of metal iiuo-` rid and metal oxid, or morespecifically` aluminium iuorid and aluminium oxid, as described andclaimed asto chemical reduction 4 in Letters-Patent of the United Statesgranted to me May 6, 1902, and numbered 699,282, in which is describedthefollowlng reaction,

viz:-

A1211 211120, acto2 6A1+ scar, eco.

The present application is intended vtocarbon or other binder, forming acom ositemetalcarbon containing electrode o the per se in ordinarycarbon character aforementioned, instead of calcium carbid or acetylid,such as aluminium carbid, may be provided or exist, Without de artingfrom. the spirit of my invention, and t e term ,metal carbid as employedherein With reference to the character of a spe'cies of metalclaimedherein, as a constituent of the composite electrode, is included doublemetal carids or metal-hydrogen-containing compounds, such as hydrogenand other metal carbid, or such compounds as may be considered ashydrogen carbid (hydrocarbon) in Which one or more hydrogens arereplaced by another metal, and the acetylids referred to and claimedherein include that species of carbid Whichyields acetylene upondecomposition With Water, and Which compound may be considered asacetylene in which hydrogen thereof is re laced by other metal.

The .term fmeta -carbon-containing compound employed herein is intendedto imply and does imply a distinct chemical compound containingchemically combined elements, of which metal and carbonare essentials,and said expression is to be interpreted to the full extent and with thefull meanin of the terms relatin to such compounds as roadly set forthin t e specification of the original application iiled April 18, 1903,Serial No. 153,329, of which the present'application is a division asbefore stated, as eing substances containin metal and carbon, eitherascarbid, acetyli or other union, it being obvious that the saidmetal-carbon-containing compound employed as essential ingredient in thepresent composite electrode must be a conductor of electricity.'

The terms inviscid and fixed as employed herein with referenceto thecharacter of the binder for the metal-carbon-contaming compounds, metalcanbids, acetylids, or metal acetylids, emplo ed, is intended to imply,and does imply, .a inder of self retaining or non-viscous nature,capable per se of retaining the constituents against gravity IWhen 1nuse, c'. e., not fluid, semi-fluid, or

readily fusible or liquefiable under the conditions 'to which it 1s tobe employed or to which to be subjected during use, ascontradistinguishing a-xed carbon binder-'from a viscous or semi-Huidagglutinizing agent, such as tar or similar liquid, s'emi-hquid, orliquefiable substances incapable per se of retalningthe constituentsagainst gravity when suspended. i

Having now described my invention what I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent is 1. Anelectrode composed of ametal-carbon-containing compound and an inviscid, fixed binder.

2. An electrode containing a metal-carboncontaining compound and aninviscid,fixed binder.

3. An electrode composed of a metal-carbon-containing com ound and anelectrically conductive bin er. y

4. An electrode containing a metal-carboncontaining compound and anelectrically conductive binder.

5. An electrode composed of a metal-carbon-containing compound and aninviscid, fixed carbon-containing binder.

6. An electrode containing a metal-carboncontaining compound and aninviscid, fixed carbon-containing binder.

7. An electrode composed of a metal-carbon-containing compound and acarbon binder.

8. An electrode containing a metal carboncontaining compound and acarbon binder.

9. An electrode composed of a metal carbid and an inviscid, fixedbinder.

10. An electrode containing a metal carbid and an inviscid, fixedbinder.

11. An electrode composed of a metal carbid and an electricallyconductive binder.

12. An electrode containing a metal carbid and an electricallyconductive binder.

13. An electrode composed of a metal carbid and an inviscid, fixedcarbon-containing binder.

14. An electrode containing a metal carbid and an inviscid, fixedcarbon-containing binder. r

15. An electrode composed of a metal carbid and a carbon binder. f

16. An electrode containing a metal carbid and a carbon binder.

17. An electrode composed of an acetylid and an inviscid, fixed binder.

18. An electrode containing an acetylid and an inviscid, fixed binder.

19. An electrode composed of an acetylid 25. An electrode com osed of ametall acetylid and an inviscid, xed binder.

26. An electrode containin a metal acetylid and an inviscid, fixed biner.

27. An electrode composed of a metal acetylid and an electricallyconductive binder.

28. An electrode containing a metal acetylid andan electricallyconductive binder.

- 29. An electrode composed of a metal acetylid and an inviscid, fixedcarbon-containing binder.

30. An electrode containing a metal acetylid and an inviscid7 fixedcarbon-containing binder.

3]. An electrode composed of a metal acetylid and a carbon binder.

32. An electrode containing a metal acetylid and a carbon binder.

33. An electrode composed of an electrically conductive metal carboncontaining compound and an inviscid, fixed binder.

34. An electrode containing an electrically conductive metal carboncontaining compound and an inviscid, fixed binder.

35. An electrode composed of an electrically conductive metal carboncontaining compound and an, electrically conductive binder.

36. An electrode containing an electrically conductive metal carboncontaining com ound' and an electrically conductive bin er. l.

37. An electrode composed of an electrically conductive metalcarboncontaining compound and an inviscid, fixed carbon-containlngbinder. e

38. An electrode containing an electrically conductive metalcarboncontaining com ound and an inviscid, fixed carbon-containing binder.

39. An electrode composed of an electrically conductive metal carboncontaining compound and a carbon binder.

40. An electrode. containing an electrically conductive metal carboncontaining compound and a carbon binder.

41. An electrode composed of an electrically conductive metal carbid andan inviscid, fixed binder.

42. An electrode containing an clcctrically conductive metal carbid andan inviscid, fixed binder. 43. An electrode composed of an electric--ally conductive metal carbid and an electrically conductive binder.

44. An electrode containingan electrically conductive metal carbid andanelectrically conductive binder.

45. An electrode composed of an electrically conductive metal carbid andinviscid, fixed carbid-containing binder.

46. A n electrode containing an electrically conductive metal carbid andinviscid, fixed carbon-containing binder.

47. An electrode composed of an electrically conductive metal carbid anda carbon binder.

48. An electrode containing an electric- 'ally conductive acetyli :fixedbinder.

ally conductive metal carbid and a carbon binder. l l

49. An electrode com osed of an electricand an inviscid,

50. An `electrode containing an electrically conductive acetylidvand aninviscid, fixed binder.

' 51. An' electrodecomposed of an electrically conductive acetylid andan electrically conductive binder.

52. An electrode containing an electrically conductive acetylid and anelectrically conductive binder.

53. An electrode composed of an electrically conductive acetylid andan'finviscid,

' ixed carbon-containing binder.

54. An electrode containing an electrically` conductive acetylid and aninviscid, fixed carbon-containing binder. y

5.5. An electrode com osed of an electrically` conductive acety id and acarbon binder.

56. An electrode containing an electrically conductive acetylid and acarbon binder.

57. An electrode composed of an electrically conductive metal acetylidand an inviscid, fixed binder.

. 58. An electrode containin an electrically conductive metal acetyliand' an inviscid, fixed binder.

59. An electrode composed of an electrically conductive metal acetylidand an electrically conductive binder.

60. An electrode containing an electrically conductive Aacetylid and anelectrically conductive binder.

61. An electrode composed of an electrically conductivemetal acetylidand an inviscid, ixed carbon-containing binder.

62. An electrode containing an electrici ally conductive metal acetylidand an inviscid, fixed carbon containing binder.

63.` An electrodecomposed of an electrically conductive metal acetylidand a carbon binder.

64. Anv electrode containin an electrically conductive metal acetyli anda car- -bon binder.

In testimony Whereot` I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

J. R. NOTTINGHAM. CHARLES S. FLETCHER.

